Flashlights, portable lanterns, portable radios and television, cameras, video recorders, portable dictating machine, remote controls, alarm clocks, toys, hearing aids, and the like are used extensively in this country and abroad. Almost every home and business has at least one flashlight or portable lantern and a radio. Many home and businesses have numerous devices, such as recorders, portable radios and televisions, video recorders, calculators, cameras, and the like, which utilize batteries for their energy source. Some of the devices, such as flashlights, are used on an infrequent basis, that is, during an emergency situation where there has been a power failure or when it is not convenient to use a light source powered by conventional household current, such as for outdoor use or use in an unlighted attic or crawl space. Other devices, such as portable radios, are used extensively. The majority of these battery powered devices use dry-cell non-rechargeable batteries. Nonrechargeable alkaline batteries sold under the trademarks EVEREADY, DURACELL, RAY-OVAC, and the like, have a number of advantages over rechargeable batteries. On a weight-to-weight and volume-to-volume basis, the alkaline battery can supply three to four times the wattage of a rechargeable battery. In addition, non-rechargeable, dry-cell batteries put out a higher voltage than dry-cell rechargeable batteries. Many dry-cell rechargeable batteries, even if not in use, have to be periodically charged to keep the batteries from falling below a defined charge level to prevent permanent damage to the batteries. Alkaline batteries, which are used frequently, can have a shelf or storage life of from three to five years. During this period, no maintenance of the battery is required. In contrast, most rechargeable batteries wet-cell and dry-cell will completely discharge within six months or less of their last recharge.
Dry cell batteries convert chemical energy directly to electrical energy and consist of a number of voltaic cells; each voltaic cell consists of two half-cells connected in series by a conductive electrolyte containing anions and cations. An electrolyte is any substance containing free ions that make the substance electrically conductive. The most typical electrolyte is an ionic solution, but molten electrolytes and solid electrolytes are also possible. Commonly, electrolytes are solutions of acids, bases or salts. Furthermore, some gases may act as electrolytes under conditions of high temperature or low pressure. Electrolyte solutions can also result from the dissolution of some biological (e.g., DNA, polypeptides) and synthetic polymers (e.g., polystyrene sulfonate), termed polyelectrolytes, which contain charged functional groups.
Electrolyte solutions are normally formed when a salt is placed into a solvent such as water and the individual components dissociate due to the thermodynamic interactions between solvent and solute molecules. As an example, when table salt, NaCl, is placed in water, the salt (a solid) dissolves into its component ions, according to the dissociation reactionNaCl(s)→Na+(aq)+Cl−(aq) It is also possible for substances to react with water producing ions, e.g., carbon dioxide gas dissolves in water to produce a solution which contains hydronium, carbonate, and hydrogen carbonate ions. Electrolytic conductor compounds can be formulated to create a chemical reaction at a metal/electrolyte interface. In batteries, two materials with different electron affinities are used as electrodes; electrons flow from one electrode to the other outside of the battery, while inside the battery the circuit is closed by the electrolyte's ions. Here the electrode reactions convert chemical energy to electrical energy. One half of the battery comprises the electrolytic portion and the electrode to which anions (negatively charged ions) migrate, i.e., the anode or negative electrode. The other half of the battery includes electrolyte and the electrode to which cations (positively charged ions) migrate, i.e., the cathode or positive electrode. In the redox reaction that powers the battery, cations are reduced (electrons are added) at the cathode, while anions are oxidized (electrons are removed) at the anode. The electrodes do not touch each other but are electrically connected by the electrolyte. Some cells use two half-cells with different electrolytes. A separator between half-cells allows ions to flow, but prevents mixing of the electrolytes.
Each half-cell has an electromotive force (or emf), determined by its ability to drive electric current from the interior to the exterior of the cell. The net emf of the cell is the difference between the emfs of its half-cells. Therefore, if the electrodes have emfs ε1 and ε2, then the net emf is ε2−ε1; in other words, the net emf is the difference between the reduction potentials of the half-reactions.
The electrical driving force or ΔVbat across the terminals of a cell is known as the terminal voltage (difference) and is measured in volts. The terminal voltage of a cell that is neither charging nor discharging is called the open-circuit voltage and equals the emf of the cell. Because of internal resistance, the terminal voltage of a cell that is discharging is smaller in magnitude than the open-circuit voltage and the terminal voltage of a cell that is charging exceeds the open-circuit voltage. An ideal cell has negligible internal resistance, so it would maintain a constant terminal voltage of ε until exhausted, then dropping to zero. If such a cell maintained 1.5 volts and stored a charge of one coulomb then on complete discharge it would perform 1.5 joule of work. In actual cells, the internal resistance increases under discharge, and the open circuit voltage also decreases under discharge. If the voltage and resistance are plotted against time, the resulting graphs typically are a curve; the shape of the curve varies according to the chemistry and internal arrangement employed.
As stated above, the voltage developed across a cell's terminals depends on the energy release of the chemical reactions of its electrodes and electrolyte. Alkaline and zinc-carbon cells have different chemistries but approximately the same emf of 1.5 volts; likewise NiCd and NiMo cells have different chemistries, but approximately the same emf of 1.2 volts. On the other hand the high electrochemical potential changes in the reactions of lithium compounds give lithium cells emfs of 3 volts or more.
Alkaline batteries are a type of primary batteries dependent upon the reaction between zinc and manganese dioxide (Zn/MnO2). A rechargeable alkaline battery allows reuse of specially designed cells. Compared with zinc-carbon or zinc chloride batteries types, alkaline batteries have a higher energy density and longer shelf-life, with the same voltage. Button cell silver-oxide batteries have higher energy density and capacity but also higher cost than similar-size alkaline cells. The alkaline battery gets its name because it has an alkaline electrolyte of potassium hydroxide, instead of the acidic ammonium chloride or zinc chloride electrolyte of the zinc-carbon batteries. Other battery systems also use alkaline electrolytes, but they use different active materials for the electrodes.
Alkaline batteries account for 80% of manufactured batteries in the US and over 10 billion individual units produced worldwide. Unfortunately, many are often only partially used or taken out of their original packaging and then put aside for long periods of time only to be later discovered by the consumer who, at this point in time has no idea whether or not the battery has any useful electric charge left. Many are often discarded with the belief they are spent and “dead” when in reality there is a substantial amount of electric power remaining therein. On the other hand, often times a battery or batteries may by employed in a device when in fact they are used up or “spent” and the device then doesn't work when needed. It would be useful then to be able to readily and simply ascertain the condition of a dry cell storage battery and the amount, if any of charge left therein if the age or prior degree of use thereof is unknown. Battery testers known in the art require the use of relatively large, bulky devices and use a more expensive volt-meter that may not reflect the real “working capacity” or remaining energy of the battery tested. The present invention is comprised of essentially four key parts: two metal arms or claws, one bulb casing or light connector and one light-emitting device (here presented with an incandescent bulb). Battery testers known in the art must generally use volt-meters comprised of a bulky screen with a large plastic casing. This assembly requires expensive parts that may not be recycled when the tester is broken
Known testers may indicate that the battery still has power, but when put into a device, the battery doesn't deliver its expected energy. The present invention shows that a battery has a charge by lighting a small bulb connected within an electrical circuit created by the arms. If there is still energy in the battery, the light goes on, if there is no energy left in the battery, the bulb does not. The amount of electric power remaining in the alkaline cell is also shown. If the bulb is dim, the energy is low, if it is bright, the battery is still in a well charged condition. It visually permits the tester to see how much energy is left in the tested battery.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,039,533 to Bertness et. al teaches a storage battery that includes a battery test module mounted to the battery housing and electrically coupled to the terminals through Kelvin connections. A display is configured to output battery condition information from the battery test module. Battery post extensions couple the battery test module to terminals of the battery.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,347,958 to Tsai et. al teaches a connecting device attachable to a battery terminal that can display the electrical condition, such as the voltage of power and the condition of the fuses of each line. The connecting device includes a main body having a clamp at one end for fixing to the battery terminal, and the other end for carrying a display unit and connecting cables of appliances. The display unit makes the connecting device displayable with electrical conditions directly without the need of using other testing devices.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,332,133 also to Bertness et. al. discloses a device for testing a battery, comprising a measurement circuitry adapted to apply a signal to cells of the battery and measure a response signal of the cells that make up the battery; and a microprocessor coupled to the measurement circuitry adapted to determine a statistical parameter of a first portion of a string of cells that make up the battery as a function of the response signal, measure a first dynamic parameter of a second portion of the string of cells that make up the battery as a function of the response signal, and provide an output based upon a comparison of the statistical parameter to the dynamic parameter.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,614,333; 6,612,151 and 5,607,790 to Hughen et. al. teaches packaging for the commercial sale of one or more alkaline battery cells. The packaging is comprised of a label/tester composite. The batteries are removable from the packaging and the alkaline cell has positive and negative terminals and a metal housing with a cylindrical wall. The label/tester composite comprises film packaging with a thermo-chromic material disposed on the side thereof. By pushing in on the ends of the packaging by the (+/−) terminals of a battery in said packaging, charge generated from the battery causes the thermo-chromic material to react and change color, indicating whether the battery tested has charge, and if so, how much. The battery tester is part of and integral with the commercial packaging which is disposable. All of the above devices useful in measuring the charge of a dry cell battery are relatively complex articles comprised of multiple parts designed for use by engineers and non-layman type individuals. They are certainly not easily used by children
U.S. Pat. No. 6,049,210 to Huang discloses a device for displaying the remaining capacity of a rechargeable battery. The device comprises a current sensing resistor connected between an external power source and the rechargeable battery, for sensing a charge current and a discharge current of the rechargeable battery. A current-to-frequency converter converts the charge and discharge currents into first and second count signals having first and second toggle frequencies. A microprocessor compares the first and second frequencies with a predetermined frequency, to measure the remaining capacity of the rechargeable battery and generate display data accordingly. A display device displays the remaining capacity of the battery
The present invention provides an alkaline battery cell tester that comprises a simple and quick means to measure the electric charge of an alkaline power battery. The tester device measures not only whether the alkaline cell battery has any electric charge remaining, but how much electro-chemical power remains therein. Nickel-cadmium, lithium on, re-chargeable alkaline cells commercially known as AA, AAA, C, D standard sizes as well as other lithium dime configurations known in the art from 1.5 volts up to 9 volts may be tested. New, unused batteries can be distinguished from slightly used but still charged batteries while un-charged, “dead” batteries can be determined and thrown away.
More specifically, the present invention comprises a scissors-shaped alkaline battery power tester is comprised of two (2) pincer or claw-like flanges that are pivotally attached to each other towards the central portion of each. The distal ends of each flange are formed as substantially right-angled, arched-shaped points so that when brought together through the compression of the two proximal ends, each simultaneously contacts the either the anode or the cathode of an alkaline battery cell. In that way, the dry cell alkaline battery and the arms create an electrical circuit or path in which electrons from the battery can flow. A light bulb attached within the circuit is illuminated thereby and the degree of illumination is directly correlated to the amount of charge in the circuit.